DEGETTE DRAWS A CHALLENGER: And Pledges to Make a Fool of Herself if Reelected

U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette faces “one of her toughest reelection challenges in years,” reports the Denver Post in their story about Saira Rao making the Democratic ballot at the weekend assembly to challenge the long, long, long-term incumbent.

Rao pulled 37 percent of the party activist’s support while DeGette led with 60 plus percent.

That is a solid lead for an incumbent and DeGette arrogantly predicted a repeat coronation by proclaiming her “game is already pretty high.”

Uh huh.

If that “game” was the same speech she delivered to the liberal wing of her party, she needs a time-out to reevaluate her message.

Just like Republicans, Democrats are known to get tired of business-as-usual and get the itch to throw out the bums — and as DeGette bragged, she’s been in D.C. for 22 years.

She says the difference between her and Rao is leadership, but what exactly has DeGette done in those two decades except run for office?

And there’s the rub.

DeGette boasted that if she can win yet a 12th term, and if pigs fly and Democrats win control of the House, and if she were to become chair of a subcommittee, she would finally get the power to subpoena important people and harass them in hearings like she did last week in her embarrassing performance with Mark Zuckerberg.

“I just have one thing to say: Imagine me with subpoena power,” she said, pledging to subpoena EPA chief Scott Pruitt.

We can imagine that, and it’s frightening. Even if she were reelected and if she became a subcommittee chair and subpoenaed the EPA chief, we have no doubt she would squander her time challenging him on petty issues like travel spending and whether he flies first class, rather than the EPA spill and bungled cleanup of the Gold King Mine.